Farewell, My Queen

Essentially the story of Marie Antoinette’s final days, Chantal Thomas’s literary historical novel Farewell, My Queen (2002) focuses on a book reader who reconstructs the notorious opulence of late 18th-century Versailles, a perfectly constructed court that falls apart at the seams. Winner of the 2002 Prix Femina, Farewell, My Queen, received an overwhelmingly positive critical response for its depiction of a monumental period in French history. The book was made into a major motion picture. Thomas is a French writer and historian who worked in publishing and taught at both French and American universities.

Farewell, My Queen begins in early 19th-century Vienna, although much of the action concerns the period between July 14th and July 16th, 1789. The protagonist, Madame Agathe-Sidonie Laborde, lives in exile in Vienna, but she once served Marie Antoinette, reading her books every evening, although Marie Antoinette didn’t like reading very much.

Now, Agathe-Sidonie looks back on that fateful period in history, lamenting that no one talks about Marie Antoinette and her court anymore. After living with Marie Antoinette for more than 11 years, she wants to tell the royal side of the story as she wonders if the royals were ever as bad as people made them out to be.



Agathe-Sidonie admits that she is a monarchist. Fiercely loyal to the throne, she wouldn’t abandon her king or queen, no matter what anyone says about them. At the Palace of Versailles, Agathe-Sidonie is sheltered from the political turmoil unfolding just 20 miles away in Paris. Unable to comprehend the mood of the people, she has no idea the French Revolution is about to begin.

Agathe-Sidonie’s story begins on July 14, 1789. She describes a typical day at the Palace of Versailles. The nobles there follow a strict daily ritual known as the Perfect Day, which they have followed for more than 100 years, showing how rarely things change at court. This inability to change with the times sparks the Revolution.

On the morning of July 14, someone rouses the King from his sleep. This is almost unheard of—no one dares disturb royals from their slumber. However, the servant brings news that can’t wait until breakfast. The people have stormed the Bastille and are heading for the Palace of Versailles.



The King doesn’t care about his people. Unable to believe they will turn violent, he encourages everyone to go on as normal. Agathe-Sidonie goes about her daily business, planning what she will read to Marie Antoinette that evening. Some nobles, however, take a different view. Convinced that the revolutionaries will turn violent, they flee the Palace of Versailles before it is too late. Not wanting cowards around, the King lets them go.

Agathe-Sidonie compares court life to how people lived in Paris. She knew that ordinary people starved while the royals ate no less than 10 courses at every meal. She also knew that people died in the streets while nobles like Marie Antoinette lived in perpetual comfort. Although at the time, she was conscious of the contrast between normal people and the monarchy, she still believed that her King did the best he could for his people. Only as she revisits these memories does she realize how wrong she was.

As the hours pass, more nobles flee the Palace of Versailles. The nobles who remain behind pretend that it’s business as usual. They go through their daily rituals, from dressing properly to wining and dining, but it’s obvious that something is wrong. The revolutionaries are on their way to destroy the world order.



Agathe-Sidonie recalls what the Palace of Versailles looked like when it emptied. For the first time, she noticed mosquitoes outside and rats in the halls. She understands that nothing about the Palace of Versailles was ever perfect or beautiful: It was a carefully constructed illusion that poisoned the French people.

By July 16th, Marie Antoinette accepts that she can’t remain at the Palace of Versailles. She plans to run, but her best friend and other nobles betray her, leaving her behind to die. Agathe-Sidonie is torn between protecting her queen and fleeing to save her own life. She decides that, if she doesn’t escape now, it will be too late.

The revolutionaries execute all nobles they find. They also kill known associates and royal sympathizers. Given how much she loves the monarchy, Agathe-Sidonie knows that she will end up on the executioner’s block if she doesn’t flee Paris. Evading capture, she sneaks to Vienna, where she lives the rest of her life peaceably. Understanding now what went wrong in 1789, she sees that the nobles weren’t perfect after all.